Treatment strategies for chronic myelogenous leukemia which accounts for about 15˜20% of adult leukemias are largely divided into anticancer chemotherapy and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. The anticancer chemotherapy involves regulating the excessive number of leukocytes and symptoms such as splenomegaly by using interferon alpha and hydroxyurea, and low-dose cytarabine. However, since Gleevec, the first target therapy, was introduced into the treatment of chronic myelogenous leukemia, Gleevec has become the standard treatment of chronic myelogenous leukemia. However, Gleevec was found to have problems that it is expensive, use of a high dose thereof causes serious side-effects, and resistance according to use of Gleevec occurs to cause decreased sensitivity to Gleevec. Furthermore, the biggest problem of Gleevec is that it cannot inhibit formation of cancer stem cells which is a cause of recurrence, and therefore, Gleevec cannot be a therapeutic agent for complete cure. Of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is the only method for complete treatment of chronic myelogenous leukemia, but a survival rate after transplantation of hematopoietic stem cells is influenced by a patient' age, a disease state at the time of transplantation, transplantation from unrelated donor, difference in the sex of donor and recipient, and the period from diagnosis to transplantation. The biggest problem is that rates of transplant-related mortality and morbidity reach 10˜70%. Therefore, it is urgent to develop a more effective therapeutic agent for chronic myelogenous leukemia.
Meanwhile, CML cancer stem cells are an origin of CML cancer cells and also a cause of CML disease. When formation of CML cancer stem cells is inhibited, recurrence of chronic myelogenous leukemia may be prevented and a survival rate of an individual with this disease may be increased. To inhibit formation of CML cancer stem cells, a nutrient acquisition pathway which is not required in normal HSCs but critical to maintenance of CML cancer stem cells may be a target for removing CML stem cells and treating chronic myelogenous leukemia. However, a relationship between treatment of chronic myelogenous leukemia and nutrient signaling of CML cancer stem cells has not been yet disclosed.